The Museum of the Mummies in Roccapelago has three exhibition rooms, and is designed to be visited starting from the crypt.
In the first room, the crypt, there is a display of artefacts which illustrate the history of the castle.
In the second room, there are two showcases displaying devotional objects and personal items which were discovered during excavation work.
Some of these still need to be restored, but their beauty lies in the fact that they are still in the same state as they were found in, conveying a real sense of what they meant to their owners: a razor in its case, or a neck pouch with a folded-up note inside.
The exhibition does not just include artefacts, but human remains as well. These remains demonstrate the state of health of the Roccapelago community. One of the showcases is regarding archaeozoology, archaeobotany and entomology, studies which have provided important information about the geographical area and climate at the time of the Mummies.
Human remains are also on display for educational purposes.
The third room is dedicated entirely to textiles.
There are four cabinets displaying various garments, as well as countless trimmings, such as embroidery and lacework, buttons and cuffs, which were mostly quite simple in style and were used to embellish the clothes belonging to the inhabitants of Roccapelago.
The first two showcases contain jackets, shirts, bonnets and children’s clothes in a fascinating display which not only highlights the craftsmanship of the garments, but also allows us to gain insight into the anatomy of the bodies and to perceive the effect of linen, hemp and wool on them. Looking closely, there are countless details which make a simple sleeve, or a collar, the shoulders of a shirt or an underarm reinforcement quite unique.
There is a shirt alongside a burial shroud which would have both been worn by the same person, an adult male.
The creases in the robe make it possible to imagine the size of the body which was wrapped in it, and the different craftsmanship of the materials used to make the two garments is a clear indication of the difference in value between them.
The video
In the video above, the historian Dario De Santis explains the history of Roccapelago’s mummies and museums in detail. It is definitely worth watching all the way through!
Exhibition ‘In the Footsteps of Obizzo da Montegarullo’
Before the mummies were discovered, the rooms below the church used to house the exhibition ‘In the Footsteps of Obizzo da Montegarullo’. This is now set up in the building next to the church, and is dedicated to the medieval history of Roccapelago and events surrounding the famous military leader, one of the most powerful feudal warlords of the Frignano area. The three exhibition rooms house coats of arms, replicas of weapons, rooms and costumes from the medieval period, as well as a model which reproduces the siege of the castle and Obizzo the rebel at the hands of troops from the city of Lucca in 1393.
The exhibition includes important documentation of the ‘Chronicles’ composed by Giovanni Sercambi, a historian from Lucca (1348-1424) who described events surrounding the figure of Obizzo in minute detail, in manuscripts adorned with miniature illustrations.
Opening times and guided tours
From February to May, the Civic Museum of Mummies and the Museum of Obizzo da Montegarullo are open by appointment only, on Saturdays from 15h00 to 17h00. Contact Mr Enzo Ferroni on +39 334 3470940.
During the summer period, please call the phone number above and consult the website for more information.
